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VCOM Students

Board Preparation

The Center for Institutional, Faculty, and Student Success provides academic assistance specific to helping students prepare for their board exams. We can help you design a study plan based on your unique needs, recommend study materials, and provide you with helpful insight from former VCOM graduates. We can also provide you with detailed information on VCOM policies related to National Board exams. The Center’s Mental Health Counselors are also available to assist students. Please visit the counseling services webpage to learn more.  

How VCOM Supports Students Preparing for Boards

VCOM provides students with a variety of information and support in preparation for the exams. 

  • VCOM’s Academic Counselors are available to meet with students to help plan for their board study.  The Center provides all students with board prep advice throughout their OMS 2 and OMS 3 years and meets with every OMS 2 student to map out their board prep resources and plan for the year.  Students may schedule as many meetings as necessary to aid in meeting their board prep goals.
  • VCOM’s Mental Health Counselors are available to meet with students who are experiencing life difficulties, test anxiety, or other issues that may interfere with their success on boards. Students are encouraged to reach out for help with these issues as early as possible so they have plenty of time to lay a solid foundation for a successful board exam.
  • VCOM provides OMS 2 and OMS 3 students with results from a board prep survey completed by students from the previous class year after they sat for COMLEX.    VCOM surveys students from the previous class after they attempt their exam to ask about their preparation methods (resources used, number of questions completed, usefulness of practice exams, etc.).  These results are very helpful for students who want help selecting materials for their study plans or planning their study.  VCOM also schedules a panel of OMS 3 students to speak to the second-year students about study plans and resources for boards.  
  • OMS 2 students complete the Comprehensive Review Course held on each campus during Block 8. The Comprehensive Review Course provides a high yield review of the content learned in Blocks 1 through 7 and ends with the COMSAE Phase 1 as the final exam.
  • VCOM purchases Truelearn, a COMLEX style question bank, for OMS 1, 2, and 3 students that they can utilize from day one of medical school to help them prepare for VCOM exams and to prepare for boards.

Resources and Policies

VCOM’s policies about National Boards can be found in the College Catalog and Student Handbook (PDF).